New CDC Vital Signs: Smoking among those with Mental Illness

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Adults with mental illness are 70% more likely to smoke than adults with no mental illness.

Adults with Mental Illness are 70% more likely to smoke than Adults with no mental illness.

Smokers with mental illness, like other smokers, want to quit and can quit. Stop-smoking treatments work-and it’s important to make them more available to all people who want to quit.."

Atlanta, GA (PRWEB)February 13, 2013

Adults with some form of mental illness have a smoking rate 70 percent higher than adults with no mental illness, according to a Vital Signs report. Combined data from SAMHSA’s 2009–2011 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) were used to calculate national and state estimates of cigarette smoking among adults aged 18 years and older who reported having any mental illness.

"Smokers with mental illness, like other smokers, want to quit and can quit. Stop-smoking treatments work-and it’s important to make them more available to all people who want to quit."
said CDC Director Thomas Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.

“Special efforts are needed to raise awareness about the burden of smoking among people with mental illness and to monitor progress in addressing this disparity. ” said Pamela S. Hyde, JD Administrator, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

36 percent of adults with a mental illness are cigarette smokers, compared with only 21 percent of adults who do not have a mental illness.

Nearly 1 in 5 adults in the United States – about 45.7 million Americans—have some type of mental illness.

Among adults with mental illness, smoking prevalence is especially high among younger adults, American Indians and Alaska Natives, those living below the poverty line, and those with lower levels of education. Differences also exist across states, with prevalence ranging from 18.2 percent in Utah to 48.7 percent in West Virginia.

Cigarette smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States and throughout the world. Cigarette smoking is responsible for an estimated 443,000 deaths in the United States each year. For quitting assistance, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669) or visit http://www.smokefree.gov. Also, visit http://www.BeTobaccoFree.gov for information on quitting and preventing children from using tobacco.